Upsetting the Scales
by KaoTheHedgehog
Summary: As the Seven Chaos embark on a quest to recover a lost hope, doubts begin to well up within Yuji Sakai and Shana. "Is it right to tamper with an entire world for the sake of one individual?"
1. The Master Plan

Kao the Hedgehog sat on his swivel chair, carefully studying the contents of a large piece of parchment on the table. It was well past midnight, and with only a small lamp to light his workplace, he strained himself to stay awake. He was about to reach for another sip of his now cold honey-lemon tea when he heard knocking on the door to the room.

"Kao. It's Yuji. Can I talk with you for a bit?"

"Come in then," he replied. Yuji walked in and took a seat next to him.

"Unable to sleep, hedgehog?" boomed a voice from Yuji's ring: The Snake of the Festival.

"Eh, I'll be fine, Fu Xi," Kao answered as he reached for his cup of tea.

"Please do not refer to me with that dishonorable name," the Snake told him.

"Can it, dude. I'm trying to stay awake here," Kao shot back. Pencil in hand, he proceeded to make notes on the parchment.

"So…are you sure you can do this? Changing the fate of an entire world?" Yuji asked him. He and his other teammates were shocked at Kao's decision to directly intervene in and alter the events of the world of Madoka Magica. Although he had done the same thing with his Misaki City, Yuji knew that this was an entirely different world that he was tackling. Based on what he read from Kao's _Codex_, this Madoka Magica world possessed levels of magic on par with that from his universe. While this was certain to pose a problem for them, one burning question was his main concern:

"Is this really the right thing to do?"

Kao let out a small sigh. "Yuji, I know what you're thinking. But I really am going through with this. Homura may have had the right intentions at the time…" he then paused to finish his tea. "But if I want to save the Madoka universe from Darkness, I will need Goddess Madoka as well."

Yuji was about to speak, but Kao held up his left hand to cut him off, "Save your words. I don't wanna argue right now. Call me selfish, but I believe this _is_ the right thing to do, and I will stick by it. Trust me."

"But-"  
"Trust. Me."

Yuji then tried to come up with a counter-argument to Kao. Although he knew that all his actions during his one time as the leader of Bal Masque were ultimately for the best, he could not forgive himself for causing a lot of pain and suffering for the Flame Hazes he was fighting at the time, as well as any humans caught in the war.

He didn't agree with what Homura did either, but he felt that Kao's plan was highly uncalled for. Many other unnecessary lives would be involved and lost, he feared, but he was also afraid of Homura herself. A demoness was not to be underestimated, especially one that was able to pull a goddess down to normal and succeed in doing so.

As he was about to voice his concerns, the Snake decided to speak up. "I sense many things are troubling you, Yuji Sakai. It is understandable, but it is best if you trust in the hedgehog."

"I just…I just don't want a repeat of that time as the Supreme Commander of Bal Masque. You know how I feel about that, don't you?"

"Just trust me on this one," Kao told him again. "I know what I'm doing. Now go back to bed. I'm not in the mood for discussing this right now. Next time, okay?"

Yuji let out a sigh as he stood up to go back to his room. "I hope you're right," he said in a worried tone.

"Good night," Kao called out after him. He took a deep breath and exhaled. There was more to do that night. And the following nights.

Yuji walked slowly back to his room and climbed back into bed with a sleeping Shana. Shana felt him pull off the covers slightly and woke up.

"Mm, something wrong Yuji?" she asked sleepily.

"Ah, it's about what Kao told us this morning. About how he wants to change that world's fate," Yuji replied, his worry growing. "I'm not sure if it's the right thing to do." Shana then sat up and hugged him. Yuji then hugged her back.

"It's okay Yuji. I'm here for you whenever. I'll be there to help you," Shana reassured him, and followed up with a kiss on his lips.

"Thanks Shana," he said after the kiss. "I love you." The two cuddled together and went back to sleep.

* * *

- Months Later -

"Here you go, Kao. Your two custom Soul Gem recorders," Tails the Fox said as he handed them to Kao.

From the dining table where he and everyone else were eating breakfast, Kao almost spit out his honey-lemon tea upon hearing the news. Swallowing the tea in his mouth, he exclaimed, "Well that was fast!"

"So, whaddaya think?"

"Masterful work as always, Miles," Chaos complimented him as Kao held up the two Soul Gems to inspect them more closely.  
"Dude, you really sweat the details on these things! Thanks so much!" Kao told Tails and gave him a hug.

Meanwhile, Yuji forked at the scrambled eggs on his plate.

"Yuji? Something wrong?" Suguha Kirigaya asked him while biting into her toast.

"Sort of. I'm pretty worried about this grand idea of his. Even though I've helped him plan everything for this, I'm worried about screwing up and not being able to fix it," Yuji told her.

"But don't you and Shana have your Power of Existence? If something gets damaged, you can easily fix it, right?"

"It can't bring back dead people. Or prevent a demoness's wrath." Yuji then let out a sigh. "I wonder if he knows about all of that…"

Kao led Tails to the front door and bade him goodbye. After walking back to his seat, he tapped his spoon on his cup of tea and announced, "Okay guys! This is it! Time to put all that planning and calculation to the test! Finish up your breakfast and get ready cause we're going to the Madoka world right now." He then glanced at Yuji and noticed his blank gaze off to the side of the room. "I thought we talked about this already…" he thought to himself. Returning his attention to the entire group, he then raised his cup and shouted, "Here's to success!" The others raised their drinks and clinked it with Kao's cup. Yuji did as well, though somewhat halfheartedly.

"Jeez, you can be so dramatic at times," Kina the Hedgehog called out from the kitchen.

"I try, honey," Kao called back.

After the group finished their breakfast, they gathered outside Kao's house. Kao then raised his trusty sword Blade of the Dragons high in the air. He, Kina, and Chaos began channelling Chaos Energy into the blade.

Yuji stood watching the blade glow green with energy. He still felt uneasy about the mission as a whole, but he also somehow felt assured that Kao knew what he was doing. Surely, Kao had taken his feelings into account and would try to make the mission painless for him, he thought. He then felt Shana holding his hand.

"Yuji. Look at me." He then turns to face her. "Whatever happens, I'll always be by your side," she told him with a small smile. In response, Yuji clenched her hand tighter.

Kao, Kina, and Chaos stop channelling Chaos Energy into the sword, and Kao swings the sword downwards, creating a green rift in the space in front of them. The rift widens and a clear image of their destination appears: Mitakihara Middle School.

"After you guys," Kao sheathes his sword and motions everyone to walk into the portal. As Yuji and Shana were about to walk in, he stopped them for a short question. "You guys gonna be fine? Yuji?"

"Y-yeah. We'll be fine," Yuji replied.  
"Look, we've planned this out together already. It'll be fine, trust me."

"I guess so," was his only reply as they walked into the portal.

* * *

_"Hmm?"_

"Homura-chan? Is something wrong?

_"I feel…a strange presence…"_

"Homura-chan, are you okay?"  
"Oh, uh, yes. I'm fine Madoka. You don't need to worry."  
"O-Okay then. If you say so…"

_"I have to protect Madoka…She might be in danger!"_


	2. Beginnings

"Your wish has surpassed entropy. Rise, Madoka Kaname, and fulfill your destiny as a magical girl!"

Madoka Kaname felt a strange sensation over her body as her Soul Gem materialized in front of her. She then reached out with both hands and cupped the newly formed Soul Gem. "Thank you, Kyubey," she tells the white cat-like creature.

* * *

It was a clear and sunny morning in Mitakihara City. Students took their sweet time, chatting with friends, as they walked along the main path to Mitakihara Middle School. Madoka ran down the path and met up with her friends Sayaka Miki and Hitomi Shizuki. The three exchanged their plans for the day and shared a couple of laughs, when the warning bell rang, signaling that classes were about to start. "Oi! We gotta hurry up or Saotome-sensei's gonna be mad!" Sayaka told them as she started running for their classroom.

Off to the side of the path to the school's front gate, a green portal slices open.

"And we're here, guys. Timeline One," Kao told his group as he steps out of the rift. "Hoo, it's been a while since I was here," he reminisces while stretching his arms up.

"You mean 'we', honey. Me and Chaos were here that time too. Gosh," says Kina as she smacks him behind the head with her staff. He clutches the back of his head in pain.

The other members gaze at the surroundings, caught up in the beauty of Mitakihara City. It was a feast for the eyes: the architecture and greenery together made for an environment unlike what they have been used to back in their respective worlds.

"I never knew humans were capable of creating such beauty despite not being able to control Power of Existence. Fascinating, to say the least. Wouldn't you agree, Flame of Heaven Alastor?" the Snake commented on the surroundings.

"Humans are always full of surprises, Snake of the Festival. You know that very well," Alastor replied.

Yuji took his time taking in the beauty of the scenery around them. It was certainly different from his hometown or Xanadu. "Wow. I wish Misaki City was at least half as pretty as this," he said in astonishment. "Everything's so beautiful."

"Same here," Suguha replied with a giggle.

Meanwhile, Shana spotted a cluster of red lilies growing nearby and walked off to pick them.

"Um, I don't think that's okay to do, Shana…" Kina called after her, but Kao put his hand on her left shoulder. "It's fine. Let her." She then walked back towards the group, lilies in hand.

"Yuji. My hair," she stared at him and pointed to the front left side of her hair.  
"O-Okay. I don't really know how to do this," Yuji said as he awkwardly placed a lily in the side of her hair, but then fell off. He caught the falling lily and placed it in her hair again in the same way as before, but again it fell out of her hair.

"Sorry Shana. I don't really-"  
Shana made an angry expression on her face. "Hmph! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Do it right this time!" she yelled at him.

Much to Yuji's chagrin, the others could only laugh at the little lover's spat between them.

* * *

"Okay class! We have a new student joining our class today! Please walk up to the front and introduce yourself."

Homura Akemi, sporting twin braids and red-framed glasses, slowly made her way to the front of the classroom. Clutching her schoolbag tightly, she had a vulnerable expression on her face.

"H-Hello everyone. M-My name is…H-Homura Akemi. N-Nice to meet all of you," she introduced herself in a quiet voice.

Meanwhile, unnoticed by the entire class, Kao and the others stood on the left side of the classroom.

"Yuji, your Grammatica thing is so cool! It's as if we don't exist at all to these guys!" Suguha exclaimed.  
"Ahaha, thank you for that," Yuji put his hand behind his head in embarrassment.

Kao held out one of the Soul Gems towards the scene. This one started to glow in a purple light, a signal that the Soul Gem was now operating.

"So yeah, that's how you use this thing. Whenever we need an event recorded, just press the button to start it up. Press it again to stop," Kao explained to the rest of his group.

"It's hard to believe that that girl would eventually become the ultimate divine being of this world," Alastor commented.

"And that's what worries me the most," Yuji then said to him. "Who knows what she could do to us when we face her?"

"You worry too much, Yuji. Have faith in Kao and his plan," Chaos reassured him again.

Yuji sighed. "I know I should, and I am kinda hopeful that this will all be okay. It's just that I don't want to get others involved and possibly hurt. I don't want this to be like-"

"Yuji." Shana lightly punched him in his stomach, causing him to clutch his midside. "Just stop worrying. You're only making this harder for yourself," she told him.

"Yuji Sakai, I will say this again: Trust in the hedgehog. That is the least you can do for this mission," the Snake added. Letting out another sigh, Yuji then turned his attention to the scene as Kao deactivated the Soul Gem.

"Alright then. So that's how you do the recording bit. Shouldn't be difficult, but remember to remain hidden from your target should Yuji's Grammatica start wearing off. It could throw off our entire mission if they even start suspecting our existence," Kao explained to all of them. "Kina, Chaos, and I will be taking Orgel with us because we obviously cannot control Power of Existence for the stealth field. Yuji, Shana, and Leafa will make up the other team, as we had discussed. It's up to Yuji to keep his team's stealth field up." Kao then tossed the purple Soul Gem to Suguha. "We're not splitting up yet, but that ends the re-briefing. Best of luck to us all."

Suguha then handed the Soul Gem over to Yuji. "Well, here goes. Hopefully this goes smoothly and painlessly," he thought to himself as he held the Soul Gem in his right hand.

* * *

_"Maybe it would be better if you just died."_

"Maybe it would."

_"That's right. You should just die."_

"Just…die…"

Exhausted from the day's events, Homura slowly walked towards her apartment, eyes half-closed and not paying attention to her surroundings.

"Is that–" Alastor asked as he noticed a powerful distortion in the area in front of them.

"Yep. That's the one. The Witch Izabel's Labyrinth," Kina answered him. They watched as Homura unknowingly walked through the floating Witch symbol and out of sight.

"Phew, and I thought we weren't gonna make it in time," Kao breathed a sigh of relief. "Alrighty then, we're goin' in. Follow me closely and don't mess with anything," he commanded as he stood up from where the team hid and headed over to the labyrinth's entrance.

What was once a normal sunset sky was now colored a blood-red, with layered with spiraling "clouds". Its appearance looked something straight out of a Van Gogh painting: heavily stylized and unrealistic. The group watched as Homura was swarmed by numerous grotesque humanoids. They seemed to have no face, having only scribbles in place of it. The creatures approached Homura, and she braced herself for the worst.

"Kao, can't we help her?!" Suguha screamed at the hedgehog, who stood still watching the entire scene. He gave no immediate answer to her question.

Yuji knew what Suguha was planning that moment and was about to drop Orgel's stealth field, but Kao held his left hand crackling with electricity.

"Yuji, no. Just keep watching," he told him and dissipated the electricity from his hand. At that moment, two figures came to Homura's rescue. One was in a pink and white frilly dress and wielded a bow. The other was a blonde wearing a beret and fired two musket shots at the creatures approaching the poor girl. The creatures were then knocked back into a stone arch and binded to it with yellow energy strings.

"Thank goodness we came in time. It's alright now Homura-chan," Madoka told her friend.

"So those two are the so-called 'magical girls'?" asked Alastor from Shana's pendant. He had closely observed how quickly the duo had incapacitated the creatures and was impressed by their skill and power.

"They seem to possess as much power as a single Crimson Lord. Incredibly fascinating, but how can even a simple wish be this powerful?" the Snake mused.

"Oh trust me, Fu Xi, this ain't the end to the wonders of this world. Not by a long shot," Kao replied as he motioned for Shana to activate the purple Soul Gem recorder. As the scene progressed, Yuji found himself asking one question: "Why?"

"Why was I about to do that?" Although he knew that he'd risk jeopardizing the entire mission if he helped the girl, he could not just stand by idly and let her fall prey to those creatures. He could have saved her...Thank whatever gods out there for those two magical girls coming in...

"Don't tell our class, okay?" Madoka told Homura as she fired a round of magical arrows at the tied up creatures, resulting in a large explosion. With them and the stone arch destroyed, the surroundings dissolved into the area around the bridge.

"That ends that, I guess," Shana said as she turned off the Soul Gem and started to walk to the portal that Kao sliced open. "Yuji, let's go! Everyone's waiting!" she yelled to her boyfriend, who was still standing in place.

"I don't know what to do anymore. But I'll see what I can do to help Kao for now," he quietly resolved to himself. Breathing another sigh, he then waved to Shana, signaling that he's on his way.

* * *

The Walpurgis Night. The most powerful witch in existence. No magical girl has ever been able to defeat it, let alone survive its onslaught.

And now, it was right there before their eyes, ready to wreak more havoc on the world.

A wide-eyed Suguha stared dumbfounded at the floating behemoth. "T-That's the Walpurgis Night?! I-It's huge! And those she's seriously fighting it alone?!"

"Leafa, no. You're not flying over there," Kao extended his hand to block her path.

Madoka readied her bow and fired a shot at the gigantic witch before jumping towards it and firing more shots.

"So this is where she..." Shana trailed off.

The Walpurgis Night's familiars materialized to block the arrows headed for the witch. A few more appeared and rushed en masse towards the lone magical girl.

"Sadly, yes. She did win, but..." Kina answered the Flame Haze's question.

Recovering from the rush of familiars, Madoka focused all of her magical energy into a single powerful arrow and shot it at the looming monstrosity. The arrow then split into numerous smaller arrows that made short work of more of the swarming familiars.

"...she was too weakened afterwards..." Kina continued.

Madoka then leapt at the Walpurgis Night and charged her bow with more magical energy, intending to use it as a blunt weapon. She dodged the remaining familiars that rushed towards her and reached the heart of the witch. With her last bit of strength, she plunged her bow into the chest, causing the witch to give an ear-piercing shriek. A pink build-up of energy soon swallowed both Madoka and the Walpurgis Night.

Homura could only stare in horror at her friend's impending doom.

"MADOKAAAAAAAA!"

* * *

"Hey, something's been bothering Homura lately, don't ya think?" Kyoko Sakura told her friend Sayaka Miki. "She seems…I dunno, more clingy-er than usual…"

"What can I say?" Sayaka answered. "That Homura's always been a strange girl. I'm not surprised in the very least." She quickly took another sip of the milkshake she was sharing with Kyoko.

"H-Hey! Leave me some to drink, okay?!"


End file.
